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Published on: November 4, 2021
Paranormal believers show reduced resting EEG beta band oscillations and inhibitory control than skeptics
Abdolvahed Narmashiri1,2,3, Javad Hatami4, Reza Khosrowabadi5
1School of Cognitive Sciences, Institute for Research in Fundamental Sciences (IPM), Tehran, Iran. A_narmashiri@ipm.ir.
Abstract:
Paranormal believers' thinking is frequently biased by intuitive beliefs. Lack of inhibition of these tempting beliefs is considered a key element in paranormal believers' thinking. However, the brain activity related to inhibitory control in paranormal believers is poorly understood. We examined EEG activities at resting state in alpha, beta, and gamma bands with inhibitory control in paranormal believers and skeptics. The present study shows that paranormal belief is related to the reduced power of the alpha, beta, and gamma frequency bands, and reduced inhibitory control. This study may contribute to understanding the differences between believers and skeptics in brain activity related to inhibitory control in paranormal believers.

